And the Lord turned and looked at Peter

 Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."

Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest's house.  But Peter followed at a distance.  Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them.  And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, "This man was also with Him."  But he denied Him, saying, "Woman, I do not know Him."  And after a little while another saw him and said, "You also are of them."  But Peter said, "Man, I am not!"  Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, "Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean."  But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are saying!"  Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.  And the Lord turned and looked at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times."  So Peter went out and wept bitterly.

- Luke 22:52-62

 Jesus has just completed the Last Supper, at which He instituted the Eucharist (see Do this in remembrance of Me), and  He taught His disciples, "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called benefactors.  But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves."  He also warned them of what is to come:  Peter against temptation, and to all of them He taught, "I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'"  On Saturday we read that coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him.  When He came to the place, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."  And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me, nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."  Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly.  Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  When He rose up from prayers, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow.  Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep?  Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."  And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude, and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him.  But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"  When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?"  And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.  But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this."  And He touched his ear and healed him.  Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."

Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."  A note in my study bible tells us that "Luke reports only the Jewish participants of the arresting party, whereas John reveals a contingent of Roman soldiers was involved as well."  The captains of the temple would be members of the temple guards, a kind of police force of the temple.  In John's Gospel, the guards in an earlier incident were sent to arrest Jesus as He was preaching in the temple, but returned empty-handed, saying, "No man ever spoke like this Man!"

 Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest's house.  But Peter followed at a distance.  Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them.  And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, "This man was also with Him."  But he denied Him, saying, "Woman, I do not know Him."  And after a little while another saw him and said, "You also are of them."  But Peter said, "Man, I am not!"  Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, "Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean."  But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are saying!"  Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.  And the Lord turned and looked at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times."  So Peter went out and wept bitterly.  My study bible points out:  "That the Lord turned and looked at Peter is an intimate detail reported only by Luke.  One can imagine the profound meaning of their mutual glance." 

In Friday's reading, Jesus warned Peter:  "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail, and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  Peter replied to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  But Jesus told him, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."   Jesus also told the disciples, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."  And we are also told that Jesus spent His time own in prayer, as He awaited what was to come, His betrayal and arrest -- and that in response He was strengthened by an angel.   So in all ways, the Gospel emphasizes that it is prayer that strengthens us:  Jesus' prayer is the saving prayer for Peter, Jesus prays for His own strength, Jesus teaches the disciples to pray.  Yet the power of the temptation is also clear in Peter's denial.  In this, he has relied on himself, and his own exuberance (as happens so often in the Gospels) in his bold declarative words to Jesus, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  It's an example for all of us, and teaches us about our best intentions, our emotional strength, and what temptation does to us.  In the end, this humiliating scene is one in which Peter cannot even stand up to a servant girl and declare his loyalty to Christ.  Jesus' knowing look is another kind of warning here, because it is in the context of His warning and admonition about the future:  "When you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  In this way, Peter's faith did not fail.  We are taught at once about sin, about faith, and about the eternal kind of path we're on.  Peter's temptation is a strong one; we're all tempted at our greatest points of weakness, whatever they may be.  But the journey of faith runs much deeper within us than these temptations; it is a journey in which we are linked to Christ through a depth within ourselves, a kind of commitment and bond that reaches beyond the struggle with temptation.  It was to Peter's confession of faith that Jesus stated, "On this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it."  Even this humiliating moment of failure is not enough to break the bond of faith, because Peter will return and be that rock.  Wherever the Gospel goes, we have this record of Peter, the one who will be a  great leader of the apostles to come, and who will meet life with tremendous courage that stands as an eternal example to all of us.  The power of the Gospel, and of the Church itself, is evident also in the fact that this particular denial and failing is a part of the story we're given, humbling as it is, and the poor light in which our leader of the apostles is shown.  It's important that we not take it for granted, nor take it lightly, but understand what Jesus has called the power of darkness.  It is important that we understand what temptation is, and take seriously the words of Jesus to Peter, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat."  The times when we're not aware of it, when we're filled with exuberance of great intentions, when we think we can be carried along on our own resolve and emotional strength, we need to remember the power of prayer in which Jesus invests so much, and which He teaches to His disciples.  The very early hours of the morning, I find, can also be times when my strength fails me, when fears may overcome the courage I find in prayer.  It's a vulnerable moment.  But the remedy is always with us.  The Gospel gives us this great, profound example of failing and return and faith.  Let us never forget it.  The Gospel writers tell us all of its importance and inclusion of an unflattering portrait of Peter, the rock.  Perhaps it's one of the most stunning lessons in all of the Gospels, if we will allow ourselves to learn its lesson.  We're encouraged to be aware of our own weaknesses and vulnerabilities.  For some of us (I include myself), that's a repeated process through which we pass many times!  Let us remember the bond of faith, and the power of prayer.  Peter would return to Christ, and he would be the strength for the others that Jesus asked of him.  Let us most especially remember Luke's gift of Jesus' knowing glance at Peter, a glance that conveys to us so much about what He knows of our hearts, and how much faith and hope He places in us.  The bond of prayer allows us to understand and know this for ourselves.